Your home is the place to enjoy and relax but overlooking some integrity aspects of your house can lead to health issues, accidental injuries or damage to the building that should be avoided. We put together a list of home improvements to make your home the safe refuge that you and your family deserve.

1. Prevent water damage

In the interiors, ask a qualified plumber to check the plumbing installation and the integrity of the piping. Repair all the leaking faucets and fixtures and replace every 5 years the hoses of the clothes and dish washers.

Outdoors, keep in good shape the gutters and downspouts and make sure that there are no leaks from windows or cracks to the attic, basement of foundations. The excess of moisture can lead to grow highly dangerous mold, fungi and rot the wood and concrete.

2. Check the electrical installation

Beyond the obvious risk of electrical shock from an exposed wire or damaged socket, a faulty installation inside walls can provoke fires and burns, especially in older buildings. Ask a certified electrician to make a full inspection of the electrical installation and upgrade the wiring to comply with all the latest security recommendations.

3. Examine foundation and wall cracks

Measure existing cracks every change of season and pay special attention to the showing of new ones. While the superficial ones can be repaired with some caulk or plaster and painting, the more deep ones can mean a serious damage to the integrity of the whole structure of the house. If you find the cracks of the walls growing bigger is time to call a contractor with experience in foundations.

4. Get rid of pests

While some bugs can be just annoying, there are pests that can be very harmful to your health and even to the integrity of the house. Examine thoroughly for sawdust from termites or carpenter ants, and pay attention to rodents’ droppings or unusual sounds from the roof that could be bats.

Disgusting, right? Well, pests can propagate sickness, pollute the indoor air and damage the building even before they are fully noticed, so call a pest control company at the smallest sign of infestation.

5. Install or upgrade your home monitors

Safety is about being healthy, keeping the structure or preventing burglary and nowadays you can take care of all three with modern smart home monitors.

If you already have a simple smoke detector, you might consider upgrading to a smart detector that can track noise levels, temperature, humidity, gas and particles that sends a notification to your phone so you can act right away even if you are not at home. And, of course, keep in good shape your HVAC to avoid indoor air pollution and check periodically fire extinguishers, emergency locks and unused alarms before they are needed.

Having a safe home is something you can achieve following these recommendations from our experts. Is there any safety measure you take that you want to share with us? Leave it in the comments below.